History Archives - Page 2 of 9 - Friends of Socialist China

How China’s victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression inspired Africa

We are pleased to republish below two items from the Xinhua News Agency exploring the connections between China’s victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the African liberation struggles of the second half of the 20th century.

Harare-based political commentator Dereck Goto notes that for Zimbabweans, the history of the Global Anti-Fascist War “resonates with our own odyssey from colonial subjugation to independence, from marginalisation to self-assertion”.

The article recalls some important and little-known wartime encounters: “Connections to Africa during the war were real. In 1942, Chinese troops in Myanmar carried out the daring rescue at Yenangyaung, freeing thousands of encircled Allied soldiers. Among accounts from that period are memories of Africans serving in British colonial formations who encountered Chinese troops. One such story, passed down in veterans’ circles, tells of a Rhodesian soldier – Sergeant James Moyo – who wrote that Chinese troops who saved him and his comrades were brothers in the fight for freedom. The story captures the essence of solidarity: strangers recognising in each other a shared destiny of resistance. That spirit prefigured the later bonds between China and Africa in liberation struggles.”

Goto observes that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s presence in Beijing at the parade marking the 80th anniversary of China’s victory, alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping, underscores a friendship rooted not in convenience but in shared sacrifice.

The article goes on to describe various ways in which China is contributing to Zimbabwe’s ongoing development process.

The Kariba South hydropower station expansion, the Hwange Thermal Power Station Unit 7 and Unit 8 project, the new Parliament Building in Mount Hampden, and Zimbabwe’s 5G rollout through Huawei all carry Chinese fingerprints. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when vaccine nationalism exposed the fragility of global solidarity, it was Chinese vaccines that reached our shores in time. These acts are not transactional; they flow from a philosophy forged in struggle — that security and prosperity must be collective, not individual.

Manuel Pinto da Costa, former president of Sao Tome and Principe, said in an interview with Xinhua that “China’s victory in the war not only profoundly changed the international landscape, but also forged deep bonds of friendship between Africa and China along the path of pursuing independence and national development”.

He added that the rise of emerging forces such as the BRICS countries has created new opportunities for Global South countries to pursue equality and development, and that China’s engagement with Africa is fundamentally different to that historically pursued by the West.

China’s model of cooperation with African countries is fundamentally different from the approaches we experienced in the past. China has demonstrated a path of equality and mutual benefit.

He concludes that “by working hand in hand under the new international landscape, China, Africa and the wider developing world will open up broader opportunities for peace and development”.

To remember history is to carry its torch forward

Sept. 14 (Xinhua) – Eighty years ago, the Chinese people stood battered but unbroken after a 14-year struggle against brutal aggression. During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, China suffered over 35 million casualties and saw its cities and villages devastated. Yet from those ashes emerged not only a military victory, but a moral triumph. It was China’s declaration that sovereignty could be reclaimed and that a united people could defeat an enemy that appeared indomitable.

For Zimbabwe, this anniversary is not a distant page in another nation’s story — it is a mirror. China’s path resonates with our own odyssey from colonial subjugation to independence, from marginalisation to self-assertion.

Canadian communists honour Chinese people’s victory

The Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) (CPCML) issued a special supplement of their online newspaper on September 6 to mark the 80^th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

In its opening article, CPC(ML) writes: “The contribution made by the peoples of China to the cause of liberating humankind from the scourge of Nazi fascism and Japanese militarism and ending World War II was colossal.

“On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Chinese people’s war of resistance against Japanese aggression and the victory of the worldwide Anti-Fascist War, the peoples of the world pay homage to the 35 million Chinese who died in that war and all the heroes who faced the Japanese onslaught and its unprecedented brutality. They join the Chinese people in recalling the events of the war, the leadership of Mao Zedong, one of the outstanding revolutionary anti-imperialist fighters of the 20th century, and in recognising their contributions.”

The party notes that, “Events have recalled the events which took place and the heroism of the people, fully aware that their exceptional courage and ingenuity pinned down some 1.86 million Japanese soldiers, 50 per cent of its total force, preventing their deployment elsewhere,” adding, “Japan has never recognised the heinous crimes it committed in China during its 14 years of occupation.”

But as the article, notes, between 1942 and 1945, the Japanese military carried out the ‘Three-Alls’ Policy against the Chinese people: kill all, burn all and loot all. Besides committing massacres of civilians like the Rape of Nanjing and using biological and germ warfare against the people, the Japanese abducted close to 200,000 Chinese women and girls, forcing them into sex-slavery for the Japanese military. Close to 100 million people were displaced and became refugees.

On the auspicious occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Chinese people’s victory, the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) pays its deepest respects to the heroic Chinese people and the peoples of Asia who, organised and led by the communists, stopped the Japanese aggressors in their tracks. Along with the Soviet Red Army and the anti-fascist forces of the world, they secured the peace.

CPC(M-L) salutes the Chinese people and their stunning accomplishments in liberating China and turning it into a modern nation, second to none.

CPC(M-L) also pays tribute to the Canadian communist, Dr. Norman Bethune, whose internationalism and selfless medical services to the Chinese people’s war of resistance are the foundation of the fraternal ties of peace and friendship between the Canadian and Chinese people. This friendship is bound to prevail as together the peoples of the world rise to the challenge of coming revolutionary storms.

CPC(M-L) decries the absence of a high-level Canadian delegation in Beijing for China’s Victory Day Celebrations. Canada has joined the US and NATO countries in boycotting the celebrations, thus refusing to acknowledge China’s contributions to the fight against Nazi fascism and Japanese militarism. So too, these warmongering governments boycotted this year’s Victory Day celebrations in Russia on the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi fascism in Europe.

CPC(M-L) also condemns Canada’s participation in war exercises the US is holding in the Asia-Pacific to threaten China. Particularly shameful are the war exercises held on the occasion of the V-Day celebrations, with Japan playing a leading role.

“For Canada to condone this and refuse to join the celebrations, is unacceptable. While the government boycotts the 80th Anniversary events, the peoples of Canada and worldwide join the Chinese peoples in celebrating these victories.

Review: Dead to Rights

The Chinese film Dead to Rights, a moving depiction of the 1937-38 Nanjing Massacre, went on general release in London on September 5, distributed by the Cultural Centre of Nouvelles d’Europe UK.

Carlos Martinez reviews the film, arguing that: “Although harrowing to watch, Dead to Rights is not a film of despair. It restores to memory the countless unnamed heroes who resisted occupation. And it reaffirms the principle that only truth can prevent history from being distorted or erased.”

Shen Ao’s Dead to Rights (released domestically as Nanjing Photo Studio) is a Chinese film of searing power and urgency. Set during the Nanjing Massacre of December 1937, it combines meticulous historical detail with a sweeping human drama that is resonating deeply with audiences around the world. Since its release in July, the film has smashed box office records and helped to reignite the discussion about one of the darkest chapters of the twentieth century.

The story follows A Chang (Liu Haoran), a humble postman who is mistaken for a photo studio employee by occupying Japanese soldiers. Realising that their mistake offers an opportunity for survival, Chang plays along. Inside the photo studio, he encounters the owner and his family sheltering in the basement, as well as an actress taking refuge.

The group’s uneasy survival hinges on developing photographs for a Japanese army photographer, Lieutenant Hideo Ito, who is documenting Japanese activities in the city for propaganda purposes. Yet the images they process – of torture, murder and rape – become an unbearable testament to the horrors engulfing their city. Together, the group risks everything to preserve these negatives and smuggle them to the outside world, convinced that only by exposing the truth can justice be served.

The drama draws inspiration from real events. In 1938, a teenage apprentice in Nanjing did indeed copy photographs brought in by Japanese soldiers, creating an album that would later serve as crucial evidence in war crimes trials. The English title, Dead to Rights, underscores the central motif: incontrovertible proof of wrongdoing that ultimately condemned the perpetrators.

The film’s release is especially poignant given its timing, just a few weeks before the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender and the end of the Global Anti-Fascist War. As I observed in a recent article, “China’s role in the war, and indeed the very existence of the Pacific Theatre, has to a significant degree been written out of history… However, China was the first country to wage war against fascist occupation, and the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was of decisive importance to the overall global victory over fascism. In the course of 14 years of war (1931-45), China suffered over 35 million casualties, and around 20 percent of its people were made refugees.”

While the war crimes carried out by Nazi Germany are etched indelibly into global consciousness, the Nanjing Massacre and other atrocities committed by the Japanese armed forces remain far less well known outside China. The Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, the Eastern counterpart to the Nuremberg trials, estimated that over 260,000 people were killed in the weeks following Japan’s seizure of the city. Tens of thousands of women were raped in what the late historian Iris Chang described as “an orgy of cruelty seldom if ever matched in world history”.

Films like Dead to Rights serve to set the record straight, telling the truth about the occupation’s crimes and reasserting China’s place in the Global Anti-Fascist War. Shen’s film insists that China’s sacrifices, resistance and heroism be remembered.

But the film also arrives at a moment when this history feels painfully alive, with Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza generating horrifying images of indiscriminate bombing, destroyed hospitals and civilian massacres. Indeed, the film’s central theme – the imperative to document the crimes of an occupying force – is being replayed today by courageous journalists and citizens in Gaza, whose cameras and pens are transformed into weapons of truth. As the director has commented: “A photo was a bullet on that battlefield. The click of a shutter echoed the crack of gun. The negatives pierced invaders’ lies.”

Wherever atrocities are denied or minimised – whether the Nazi Holocaust, the Nanjing Massacre, or today’s unfolding tragedies – the work of bearing witness becomes a form of resistance. The film’s characters embody that conviction. Facing daily terror, they nevertheless refuse compromise. They echo the patriotic spirit of a generation that insisted, “We will win this war,” and demanded “not one inch less” than the full liberation of China.

Artistically, the film is striking. The opening sequence cuts between bullets firing and camera shutters clicking, equating the act of shooting with both violence and documentation. The production design recreates Nanjing’s wartime devastation with harrowing realism, while the cast delivers performances of quiet dignity and depth. Liu Haoran’s A Chang is an unlikely hero – fearful but ultimately courageous – whose humanity anchors the narrative.

Although harrowing to watch, Dead to Rights is not a film of despair. It restores to memory the countless unnamed heroes who resisted occupation. And it reaffirms the principle that only truth can prevent history from being distorted or erased. In an era when denial and revisionism persist — whether from Japanese right-wing politicians or from those who seek to obscure the atrocities being perpetrated right now by Israel — this is a powerful and important message.

Dead to Rights is an epic of historical cinema, challenging audiences to confront uncomfortable truths, remember forgotten histories, and to connect to the shared global struggle against fascism and imperialism. To remember is to resist. And to honour those who preserved the truth in Nanjing is to stand in solidarity with those who risk everything today to show the world what must not be denied.

At time of writing, Dead to Rights is showing in cinemas in London, Birmingham and Manchester in the UK. Details may be found here.

Venezuela unveils monument to Chinese people’s victory

Venezuela honoured the 80^th anniversary of the Chinese people’s victory in the War to Resist Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War on September 3, with President Nicolás Maduro being joined by Chinese Ambassador Lan Hu to inaugurate a monument in the capital Caracas. They were also accompanied by senior members of the Venezuelan government, including Vice President Delcy Rodríguez and Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino.

President Maduro stated: “From Caracas, we gift the Chinese people and President Xi Jinping this monument, which will be a permanent testament to the brave victory of resistance against the erstwhile Japanese empire.”

He compared this achievement to the victory of the Soviet Red Army against Nazi Germany, emphasising that “the Chinese people’s army brought the Japanese empire to its knees and defeated it.”

Maduro further reaffirmed the ties of cooperation between Venezuela and China in a context of international solidarity: “The victory of China is the victory of the Bolivarians. It is the victory of Venezuela.”

He also highlighted that currently, in addition to being an economic power, “China is the leading military power on planet earth. A sister power, a friendly power, a power without an imperialist, colonialist, or slave-owning vision.”

Ambassador Lan Hu expressed his gratitude to President Maduro and the Venezuelan people during the inauguration:

“In the name of the government and people of China, I would like to thank President Nicolás Maduro Moros and the government and people of Venezuela for the construction of this commemorative monument, for this great global victory,” he said.

He described it as a reflection of the friendship between the two nations, adding that the sculpture also represents recognition of both the Chinese and global anti-fascist cause, along with the firm determination of both countries to resist any aggression or military invasion,

The following article were first published by Orinoco Tribune and Global Times. That in Orinoco Tribune was originally published in Spanish by Telesur.

Venezuela Commemorates 80 Years of China’s Victory in the War of Resistance Against Japan

September 4 (Orinoco Tribune) – Venezuela celebrated the 80th anniversary of the victory of China in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, a part of World War II in Asia. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro presided over an official event held in Caracas on Wednesday, September 3, to commemorate the event. He was accompanied by China’s ambassador to Venezuela, Lan Hu, and high-level members of the Venezuelan government, such as Vice President Delcy Rodríguez and Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino.

During the ceremony, a commemorative monument was inaugurated to honor China’s liberation from Japanese rule in 1945, a milestone of global significance. “From Caracas, we gift the Chinese people and President Xi Jinping this monument, which will be a permanent testament to the brave victory of resistance against the erstwhile Japanese empire,” stated the Venezuelan president.

President Maduro highlighted the historical significance of the people of China. “Today, 80 years later, we commemorate that victory that happened due to the unity of all of China,” he said. “The people saved their culture, their history, and recovered more than half of their territory that they lost in this criminal, colonial, savage war of the then Japanese empire.”

Scottish people’s contributions to China’s war of resistance remembered

As part of its commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of the Chinese people’s victory in the war to resist Japanese aggression and the world anti-fascist war, China has remembered Scottish people who stood alongside them in those difficult years.

In an article entitled, “We will never forget the Scottish heroes who made contributions and sacrifices for the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War”, published on its website on August 28, China’s Consulate-General in the Scottish capital Edinburgh writes:

“The Chinese people will never forget that during the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War – a struggle that determined the future and destiny of humanity – a great number of Scots made contributions and sacrifices for the victory of this war. They were Scottish warriors, but also heroes of the world. Among them were the great internationalist fighter Dr. Norman Bethune, heir to a Scottish family of doctors, whom Chairman Mao Zedong praised as ‘a man of noble character, a man of pure spirit, a man of moral integrity, a man free from vulgar interests, a man who was of benefit to the people,’ and who is still deeply remembered by hundreds of millions of Chinese people; Eric Liddell, the Scottish Olympic champion who traveled to China to support the Eighth Route Army’s resistance against Japanese Aggression and who passed away in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp; the valiant Scottish soldiers who fought side by side with the Chinese Expeditionary Force on the Burmese battlefield; and countless unnamed Scottish heroes who suffered inhumane atrocities in Japanese POW camps in the Far East.”

According to the Consulate-General: “The British survivors from the Japanese Far East prisoner-of-war camps were all required not to talk about their ordeals in captivity. As a result, the world knows little of their stories. Even after their passing away, their families continue to search for traces of their experiences in the camps – an awakening agony that we should be aware of, a conviction that justice will ultimately triumph over evil, and a historical truth that must never be concealed.”

The article does not elaborate but this doubtless relates to the way in which US and British imperialism sought to prevent the punishment of Japanese war criminals or to demilitarise the country, within the context of the Cold War, where yesterday’s enemy soon became a frontline, if subordinate, ally against the Soviet Union and the forward march of communism in Asia, specifically against the Chinese revolution and the wars of liberation in Korea, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

The article concludes: “We pay tribute to the Scottish heroes who made contributions and sacrifices for human progress and for the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, and we extend our deepest condolences to the families of Scots who suffered in the Japanese POW camps in the Far East during World War II.”

On September 9, the Xinhua News Agency devoted a feature article to the legacy of Eric Liddell:

“To most Scots, the name ‘Eric Liddell’ needs no introduction. Known as the ‘Flying Scotsman,’ his story has become part of national legend. Yet few realise that the Olympic champion who once stunned the world later spent much of his life in China, where he taught and preached, but finally died in a Japanese internment camp.”

Xinhua correspondents Zheng Bofei and Jin Jing write: “At the 1924 Paris Olympics, Eric Liddell captured gold in the men’s 400 metres in 47.6 seconds, setting a new Olympic and world record. Upon returning to Edinburgh, Liddell was honoured as a hero by schools, churches and sports clubs across Scotland… A century later, he remains one of Scotland’s most admired sports figures, topping the public vote when inducted into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.”

But after the Paris Olympics, the devout Christian made a choice that again surprised many: he returned to Tianjin, the northern Chinese city of his birth. Born in 1902 to Scottish missionary parents, he had spent his early years in China before returning to Britain.

In Tianjin, he taught at an Anglo-Chinese college and left a visible legacy in sports by helping to design and promote the Minyuan Stadium. Modeled after London’s Stamford Bridge (home of Chelsea Football Club), the stadium became one of Asia’s most advanced sporting venues at the time, hosting international competitions and serving as a training ground where Liddell himself won several medals.

Webinar: World War Against Fascism – Remembering China’s role in victory 80 years on

📆 Sunday 21 September 2025, 4pm Britain, 11am US Eastern, 8am US Pacific

The old adage that history is written by the victors does not seem to apply to the real victors of the Second World War, the Soviets and the Chinese on the Eastern and Pacific fronts respectively.

This webinar will mark the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender – marked in China with spectacular celebrations attended by an array of heads of state and government – focussing in particular on the contributions of the Chinese and other Asian forces which are forgotten in the largely Eurocentric narrative of the Second World War.

We will uncover some crucial but little-known aspects of the war: for example, that China was the first country to wage war against fascist occupation; that in the course of 14 years of war (1931-45) China suffered over 35 million casualties; and that without the contribution of Chinese, Korean, Mongolian and largely Communist-led resistance forces across the region, the Japanese imperial armies would have had free rein to deploy their forces against the Soviet Union and the Western Allies.

This webinar is the companion to our commemoration of VE or Victory in Europe Day, ‘The Fight Against Fascism Then and Now: 80 Years after the defeat of Nazism’. Just as that webinar discussed the re-emergence of fascist forces in the West, so in this one, we assess the renewed threats to China and other Asian countries emanating from the US, Japan and the rest of the capitalist world.

Speakers

Ken Hammond (Historian and China scholar)
Chen Weihua (Former EU bureau chief of China Daily)
Jodie Evans (Co-founder of Code Pink)
Jenny Clegg (Author and peace activist)
Keith Bennett (Co-editor of Friends of Socialist China)
KJ Noh (Journalist, writer and educator)
Radhika Desai (International Manifesto Group), Moderator.

Organisers

This webinar is organised jointly by the International Manifesto Group and Friends of Socialist China.

Xi Jinping: At all times, our work must be for the people and we must do our best to improve the well-being of all the people

Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed the commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, held on September 3 in Beijing’s Tienanmen Square, just prior to the commencement of the military parade.

Xi described it as “an occasion for us to remember history, honour fallen heroes, cherish peace, and create a better future” and paid “high tribute to our veteran soldiers and comrades, patriots, and officers who fought in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and to the Chinese nationals from home and abroad who made important contributions to our victory. I express my sincere thanks to foreign governments and friends that supported and assisted the Chinese people in resisting aggression. I also extend a warm welcome to our guests from around the world who are with us today.”

He added: “The Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was a great war fought with tenacity and valour. Under the banner of the national united front against Japanese aggression established at the initiative of the Communist Party of China, the Chinese people stood up to fight the formidable enemy with an iron will, formed a great wall with flesh and blood to defend the nation, and ultimately achieved the first complete victory in resisting foreign aggression in modern times… The Chinese nation is a great nation that is never intimidated by any bullies and always values independence and forges ahead. In the past, when faced with critical struggles between good and evil, light and darkness, progress and reaction, the Chinese people rallied together to defy the enemy. They fought for the survival of the country, for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and for justice for the whole of humanity. Today, humanity again has to choose between peace and war, dialogue and confrontation, win-win cooperation and zero-sum game. The Chinese people firmly stand on the right side of history and the progress of human civilisation. We will remain committed to the path of peaceful development and join hands with all peoples around the world in building a community with a shared future for humanity.”

Towards the conclusion of his remarks he stated: “On the new journey in the new era, the Chinese people of all ethnic groups should, under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China, follow Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents and the Scientific Outlook on Development, and fully implement the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era.”

Shortly afterwards, Xi hosted a lunch in the Great Hall of the People for visiting foreign heads of state and government, other prominent politicians, and the relatives of international friends and comrades who had supported the Chinese people during the war, among others.

He noted: “Eighty years ago, the Chinese people thoroughly defeated the Japanese militarist aggressors after fighting a bitter and heroic war of resistance for 14 years. This marked the complete victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. It was a historic turning point for the Chinese nation emerging from the grave crises in modern times to embark on the journey toward great rejuvenation; it was also a major turning point in the course of world history.

“The Chinese people won the great victory through their united efforts with the anti-fascist allied forces and the people around the world. The Chinese government and people will never forget the foreign governments and international friends who supported and assisted the Chinese people in resisting aggression.”

He said the purpose of the commemoration was to “remember history, honour fallen heroes, cherish peace, and create a better future,” adding:

“Might may rule the moment but right prevails forever. Justice, light and progress will inevitably triumph over evil, darkness, and regression. At all times, we must advocate the common values of humanity, resolutely defend international fairness and justice, and ensure righteousness prevails and brightness shines in our world.

“The people are the creators of history, and the pursuit of a better life is a shared aspiration of all nations. At all times, our hearts must be with the people, our work must be for the people, and we must do our best to improve the well-being of all the people.”

We reprint the full texts of both speeches below as originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Shoulder to shoulder: British people’s solidarity with the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression

During his recent visit to China for the commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of the Chinese people’s victory in the war of resistance against Japanese aggression and the world anti-fascist war, our co-editor Keith Bennett participated in an international symposium organised by the Institute of Party History and Literature of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Academy of Military Science, on September 2, and the Chinese Modernisation Forum (2025), organised by the School of Marxism, the Institute of Chinese Communist Party History and Party Building, and the Institute of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, all of Tsinghua University, on September 4.

We print below the text of the paper presented by Keith, which outlines the solidarity extended by people in Britain to the Chinese people’s heroic resistance, from internationalists like George Hogg who made the journey to China, to the China Campaign Committee which organised and agitated the length and breadth of the country, to the singular contribution of the South Wales miners.

During his state visit to the United Kingdom in 2015, the 70^th anniversary year of victory in the global anti-fascist war, in a speech in Buckingham Palace, President Xi Jinping recalled how our two countries had once stood together as allies and fought shoulder to shoulder.

Saying that the Chinese people would never forget this help during their hard time, he mentioned one individual in particular.

George Hogg died of tetanus aged just 30 on 22 July 1945 after devoting the last nearly eight years of his tragically short life to the Chinese people and their struggle for liberation, initially as a journalist and finally as headmaster of the Shandan Bailie School, caring for children orphaned by Japan’s brutal war of aggression.

He is perhaps best remembered for leading his pupils on a month-long 1,100 kilometre (700 miles) journey, most of it on foot and over snow covered mountain paths, to the relative safety of Gansu.

Long acclaimed as a national hero in China, Hogg remained almost entirely unknown in his native country for decades.

This began to be partially rectified with the 2008 publication of James MacManus’s biography, ‘Ocean Devil’.

The same year saw the release of the perhaps overly fictionalised feature film, ‘The Children of Huang Shi’, also called ‘Children of the Silk Road’ or ‘Escape from Huang Shi’, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Hogg and Chow Yun-fat as the legendary Chinese communist Chen Hansheng.

George Hogg came to China as a young idealist. Although from a privileged background, he had a strong family background in pacifism, specifically in the Fellowship of Reconciliation, and rooted in non-conformist Christianity. However, he not only served China. His world outlook was transformed by China, as is well expressed in the title of his book, ‘I see a new China’.

In his 1954 book, ‘The People have Strength’, his mentor, the New Zealand internationalist Rewi Alley wrote:

“The sixty-odd peasant and refugee kids who carried him out to his grave in what has now become a playing field in a school training new technicians for a new China, will not forget the day. For them it meant the passing of a comrade who was very close to them. It is not given to everyone to live with heroic disciplined revolutionary armies. George had had inspiration from his tour, as correspondent, with the Eighth Route Army and then he came at my bidding, to work with Gung Ho [the Chinese Industrial Cooperatives], where there was little glory, many problems and a simple grave at the end of the trail.

“As he fought with tetanus in his last days of the summer of 1945, he asked to have the ‘Communist Manifesto’ read to him. I read it and he said, ‘That makes sense.’”

Whilst there were also other British friends who made their contribution to China’s struggle against Japanese militarism in China itself, such as Michael Lindsay, later 2nd Baron Lindsay of Birker, whose expertise in radio engineering was much appreciated and personally commended by Mao Zedong, and the Friends Ambulance Unit, organised by the Quakers and composed of conscientious objectors, roughly 200 of whom, with the British contingent being the largest group, served in China, including by providing medical supplies to the Shandan Bailie School, this was obviously an option that was open to relatively few.

But the solidarity of people in Britain with China’s war of national salvation, as a vital, and the first, front of the world peoples’ struggle against fascism was by no means confined to those who made that journey.

By far the most important and effective organisation in this regard was the China Campaign Committee (CCC), which was founded in late August or early September 1937, that is scarcely two months after the July 7 Lugou ‘Marco Polo’ Bridge Incident that heralded Japan’s full-scale invasion and the start of China’s nationwide resistance.

Seven days later, on July 14, the Daily Worker, the newspaper of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB), described this as a “plain case of aggression” in its editorial, adding: “The Chinese people must be backed up.”

In an August 20 resolution passed by its Executive Committee, the CPGB stated: “The cause of peace throughout the world depends to a considerable extent upon the success of the heroic Chinese people… Unless peace forces can be rallied the Japanese attack on Central China will be followed by a German fascist outbreak in Central Europe… The defence of China is the defence of peace.”

Although it operated on an unprecedented scale and with unprecedented breadth of support, the China Campaign Committee did not emerge from a void or a vacuum.

Jenny Clegg, writing for the Society for Anglo-Chinese Understanding (SACU), noted that the “roots of this activism are to be found in Chartist opposition to the first Opium War” and refers to the ‘Hands off China’ Campaign (1925-27) and the ‘Friends of the Chinese People’ (1927-37), founded by the British Section of the League Against Imperialism.

Her father, Arthur Clegg, who served as the CCC’s National Organiser practically from the campaign’s inception, in his memoir, ‘Aid China – 1937-1949’, published in 1989, traces the roots of such solidarity back even further:

“Movements like the China Campaign Committee have long been part of the democratic tradition in Great Britain. They date back to the English Revolution [of the 1640s] when the Levellers took a stand for Irish independence and the end of English interference in Ireland.”

Arthur Clegg details the extraordinary range of forces mobilised by the CCC. They included church and missionary societies, businesses, some of the leading intellectual and cultural figures of the time, members of the House of Lords, the Chinese community, people with a specialised interest in China and Chinese culture, and many others.

On one occasion he even personally received a financial donation from a Colonel Younghusband. Only years later did he realise that it was the same Younghusband who had led the 1905 British invasion aimed at separating Xizang (Tibet) from the rest of China. He writes: “The only explanation I can find was that he was trying to make amends for his past efforts to weaken China.”

Support was forthcoming from many members of the Labour and Liberal parties and even from the occasional Conservative MP. However, Clegg is at pains to point out:

“Our greatest and most consistent supporter was the Communist Party, both directly and indirectly, for in those days it had influence far beyond its small but increasing membership. It was the first party to take a position defending China, the first to issue a pamphlet for China, the first to organise a Hyde Park meeting, where on August 23 [1937], J.R. Campbell demanded a Japanese withdrawal. Its branches and members loyally supported our meetings, distributed our handbills, posted our posters and saw in this a reinforcement for, rather than any rivalry with, the similar work they were doing for Spain. We all knew the issue of Spain and the issue of China were one and the same, the issue of preventing a world war.”

A clear example of how such direct and indirect support worked in practice is provided by the South Wales miners.

The “Far East” was never far – a Chinese journalist reflects on the potential for cultural exchange and people’s friendship

We are pleased to publish the below contributed article by Gao Wencheng, a London-based journalist with the Xinhua News Agency, which takes the 80^th anniversary of the victory over Japanese militarism as a starting point to highlight the prospects and opportunities of enhanced cultural exchange and people-to-people friendship between Britain and China.

He writes that, “Living in London, I am constantly struck by how near China feels” and notes that: “Only a week after World War II commemorations, London’s Shaw Theatre hosted performances of traditional Chinese Yue Opera.” An August 22 Xinhua report further notes:

“As early as 2016, the Xiaobaihua troupe staged in London a cross-cultural production that brought together characters from Shakespeare’s Coriolanus and Chinese great playwright Tang Xianzu’s The Peony Pavilion. Written around the same time, Coriolanus is a Roman tragedy, while The Peony Pavilion tells of a young woman’s tragic love and resurrection.”

He concludes:

The war against fascism was won through the collective effort of many peoples; no single nation could have achieved victory alone. This truth holds greater significance today than ever before. The ties forged between different nations in the flames of war remind us that peace and justice know no borders.

On August 15, Britain marked the 80th anniversary of VJ (Victory over Japan) Day and the end of the Second World War, with an unusually high-profile tribute. Many iconic sites, from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, were illuminated with a “V” for “Victory,” a symbol that has long been more associated with Britain’s participation in the European theatre of World War II.

In this country, the fall of Berlin in May 1945 has always loomed larger in public memory than the surrender of Japan three months later.

But this year felt different. Perhaps it was because it’s a round-number anniversary. Or perhaps it was because of King Charles III’s unusually pointed words, which stressed that those who fought and died in the Pacific and Far East “shall never be forgotten.” At noon, the country even paused for two minutes of silence marking VJ Day.

Remembering China’s role in the global anti-fascist war

The following article by Carlos Martinez, a condensed version of which appeared in Beijing Review on 3 September, highlights the often-overlooked role of China in the global victory against fascism during World War II. While mainstream accounts foreground the US and Britain, Carlos stresses that China was the first nation to wage war against fascist occupation and sustained the longest campaign, suffering 35 million casualties and massive displacement.

Japanese aggression began with the invasion of northeast China in 1931. For six years, Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang (KMT) prioritised suppressing the Communists over resisting Japan. Resistance in the northeast was led by the Communist Party of China (CPC), supported by the Soviet Union and joined by Korean fighters (including Kim Il Sung). Mounting student protests and patriotic pressure culminated in the 1936 Xi’an Incident, forcing Chiang into an United Front with the CPC, enabling a coordinated national resistance after Japan’s full-scale invasion in 1937.

The CPC’s people’s war strategy mobilised peasants and established base areas for guerrilla operations, and landmark battles such as Pingxingguan and the Hundred Regiments Campaign broke Japan’s aura of invincibility. Despite being subjected to some of history’s most horrific war crimes, including the Nanjing Massacre, Chinese forces tied down over a million Japanese troops—two-thirds of Japan’s military strength—crippling Tokyo’s expansionist plans and bolstering Allied success in both Europe and the Pacific.

The war had a decisive role in ending China’s century of humiliation, re-establishing its status as a major power, and laying the foundations for the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949. Globally, China’s resistance not only contributed to fascism’s defeat but also inspired anti-colonial struggles across Asia. Carlos concludes:

The courage, sacrifice, daring and strategic brilliance demonstrated by the Chinese people in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression form an indelible chapter in the history of the struggle for a world free from fascism, militarism, colonialism and imperialism.

The second of September 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, bringing an end to World War 2.

China’s role in the war, and indeed the very existence of the Pacific Theatre, has to a significant degree been written out of history. In his book China’s War with Japan: 1937 – 1945, British historian Rana Mitter writes that, “for decades, our understanding of [World War 2] has failed to give a proper account of the role of China. If China was considered at all, it was as a minor player, a bit-part actor in a war where the United States, Soviet Union and Britain played much more significant roles” (Rana Mitter, 2014. China’s War with Japan: 1937 – 1945; the Struggle for Survival. Penguin Books, p5).

However, China was the first country to wage war against fascist occupation, and the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was of decisive importance to the overall global victory over fascism. In the course of 14 years of war (1931-45), China suffered over 35 million casualties, and around 20 percent of its people were made refugees.

The war started in 1931

Following its emergence as a capitalist country in the second half of the 19th century, Japan had been steadily expanding its colonial ambitions in relation to China, Korea and the Russian Far East. Taiwan, the Penghu Islands and the Liaodong Peninsula were ceded by China to Japan in 1895 under the terms of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, at the conclusion of the First Sino-Japanese War.

The message of the Victory Day parade: justice will prevail, peace will prevail and the people will prevail

In the following report, our co-editor Keith Bennett reflects on witnessing the grand parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Global Anti-Fascist War.

Keith notes that the parade impressively showcased advanced military technology—ranging from hypersonic missiles and drones to nuclear-capable systems—demonstrating China’s defensive strength. Yet, the article stresses, China’s military power is not for domination but to safeguard the Chinese people and contribute to world peace.

President Xi’s address summed up the principal lesson of China’s victory: that justice will prevail, peace will prevail and the people will prevail. Keith observes:

That this vision enjoys ever greater support was shown by the presence of more than two dozen heads of state and government, along with numerous other dignitaries, the majority of them from the Global South, or Global Majority. This underlined, as did the largest ever gathering of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation just two days previously, that the days when a handful of colonialist, imperialist or hegemonist powers could dominate world affairs have gone forever. If some countries choose to stay away from or seek to undermine this inexorable multipolar dynamic it will only precipitate their decline.

The article was also published by China Today and Morning Star, and is quoted extensively in China Daily.

To be able to witness the grand military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War was an unforgettable experience.

As President Xi pointed out, this was the first complete victory won by the Chinese people in their struggle against foreign aggression and also made a major contribution to the triumph of the people of the world against fascism.

China had promised to show the world the advances in its defensive capabilities. And with an array of new equipment displayed for the first time, including nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles; a land, sea and air nuclear triad; all-weather hypersonic missiles; reconnaissance and strike drones; unmanned ship-based helicopters; advanced electronic counter-measure equipment; cyberspace warfare equipment; unmanned aerial vehicles; hypersonic anti-ship missiles; long range artillery and new generation tanks, among others, it certainly didn’t disappoint on that front.

But that was not all that left a lasting impression. Unlike some other countries, China’s military might is not there to dominate others, not to bully, oppress, occupy or exploit, but solely to provide a secure basis, a great wall of iron and steel, for the Chinese people to live a peaceful and happy life and to help secure, preserve and defend world peace.

In stark contrast to those who grotesquely speak of other countries being “on the menu”, President Xi again pledged his country to peaceful development. Only when nations across the world treat each other as equals and mutually support one another, he pointed out, can the root cause of war be eliminated, and can we prevent historical tragedies from recurring, by building a community of shared future for humanity.

The lesson of the great victory, he pointed out, was that justice will prevail, peace will prevail and the people will prevail.

That this vision enjoys ever greater support was shown by the presence of more than two dozen heads of state and government, along with numerous other dignitaries, the majority of them from the Global South, or Global Majority. This underlined, as did the largest ever gathering of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation just two days previously, that the days when a handful of colonialist, imperialist or hegemonist powers could dominate world affairs have gone forever. If some countries choose to stay away from or seek to undermine this inexorable multipolar dynamic it will only precipitate their decline.

The western media may express consternation, whether real or feigned, at the foregrounding of Russian President Vladimir Putin and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un among the honoured foreign guests. They choose to overlook the undeniable fact that it was the peoples of China and the Soviet Union who made the greatest national sacrifice to rid the world of fascist barbarism and save human civilisation. And they equally choose to overlook that Kim Jong Un’s own grandfather fought shoulder-to-shoulder with his Chinese comrades-in-arms against the Japanese aggressors in northeast China. All this found poignant expression as the three leaders greeted war veterans together at the start of the ceremony.

Many other things touched me today. The culmination featuring the release of 80,000 doves and 80,000 multicoloured balloons, reminding us that everything China does is for the sake of peace.

The pride, passion and patriotism with which service men and women and civilians alike joined in singing the national anthem and the Ode to the Motherland.

As you would expect for an event of this scale, organisation was meticulous and logistics were complex but flawless. Security was, of course, necessarily tight. But unlike in any capitalist country none of the security personnel carried arms. And whilst they were there to assist people as much as anything else, they were by far outnumbered by the kind, self-confident and enthusiastic young women and men volunteers one encountered every few steps, on hand to offer whatever help anyone might need. Every one of them a credit to socialist China and a guarantee of its bright future. Every one of them able to realise their dreams thanks to the heroes and martyrs who laid down their lives 80 years ago.

Putin: Russia and China are united in our vision of building a just, multipolar world order, with a focus on the nations of the Global Majority

We are pleased to republish below the full text of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interview with Xinhua News Agency, conducted on the eve of his visit to China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Tianjin Summit and the commemorations in Beijing for the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression.

The interview touches on a wide range of important issues, including Russia-China relations, the global balance of power, the significance of the SCO, and the lessons to be learned from the Second World War.

On the issue of the Global Anti-Fascist War, Putin notes:

The peoples of the Soviet Union and China bore the brunt of the fighting and suffered the heaviest losses. It was our citizens who endured the greatest hardships in the struggle against the invaders and played a decisive role in defeating Nazism and militarism. Through those severe trials, the finest traditions of friendship and mutual assistance were forged and strengthened – traditions that today form a solid foundation for Russian–Chinese relations.

I would remind you that even before the full-scale outbreak of the Second World War, in the 1930s, when Japan treacherously launched a war of aggression against China, the Soviet Union extended a helping hand to the Chinese people. Thousands of our career officers served as military advisers, assisting in strengthening the Chinese army and providing guidance in combat operations. Soviet pilots also fought bravely alongside their Chinese brothers-in-arms.

He adds:

The historical record leaves no doubt as to the scale and ferocity of those battles. We remember the great significance of the famous Hundred Regiments Offensive, when Chinese Communist forces liberated a territory with a population of five million from Japanese occupation. We also recall the unparalleled feats of Soviet troops and commanders in their clashes with Japan at Lake Khasan and the Khalkhin Gol River. In the summer of 1939, our legendary commander Georgy Zhukov won his first major victory in the Mongolian steppes, which in effect foreshadowed the later defeat of the Berlin–Tokyo–Rome Axis. In 1945, the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation played a decisive role in liberating northeast China, dramatically altering the situation in the Far East and making the capitulation of militarist Japan inevitable.

And, correctly remembering the crucial role played by China in the defeat of fascism and militarism and the birth of the modern international order, he states:

In Russia, we will never forget that China’s heroic resistance was one of the crucial factors that prevented Japan from stabbing the Soviet Union in the back during the darkest months of 1941–1942. This enabled the Red Army to concentrate its efforts on crushing Nazism and liberating Europe. Close cooperation between our two countries was also an important element in forming the anti-Hitler coalition, strengthening China as a great power, and in the constructive discussions that shaped the post-war settlement and helped to reinvigorate the anti-colonial movement.

Putin observes that, in the West, there are ceaseless attempts to rewrite the history of the Second World War, to downplay the role of the Soviet Union and China in the victory over fascism, and to whitewash the crimes of fascism and militarism. “Historical truth is being distorted and suppressed to suit their current political agendas. Japanese militarism is being revived under the pretext of imaginary Russian or Chinese threats, while in Europe, including Germany, steps are being taken towards the re-militarisation of the continent, with little regard for historical parallels.”

From Spain to China: remembering shared sacrifices in the World Anti-Fascist War

September 3rd marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. In the following article, originally published in Global Times on 14 August, Spanish geopolitical analyst H. Gomez notes that the history of international solidarity in the World Anti-Fascist War “did not begin in 1939, nor did it end with the fall of the Nazi Germany”.

He highlights the Spanish Civil War of 1936 as an early front in this global fight:

In 1936, when the Spanish Civil War erupted, a little-known but powerful gesture of internationalism took place. Among the first foreign volunteers to arrive in Spain was Xie Weijin, a Chinese Marxist and journalist who had studied in France and was deeply moved by the Republican cause. As bombs fell over Madrid and Barcelona, Xie risked his life to stand with the Spanish people in their resistance against interventions by fascist forces. He was soon followed by other Chinese volunteers who formed part of the International Brigades – multi-national units made up of workers, students and intellectuals from over 50 countries.

At the same time, China itself was resisting Japanese invasion. The horrors of Nanjing and the bombings of Chongqing became symbols of global anti-fascist resolve, and China too received international solidarity: Canadian doctor Norman Bethune, American aviators of the Flying Tigers, Soviet advisors, and volunteers from across Asia and beyond came to China’s assistance. Indeed, 20 medical doctors serving in the International Brigades went from Spain to China to help defend against Japanese aggression.

These acts of transnational support, Gomez stresses, were not about profit or geopolitics but about a shared moral cause. China has preserved this history through monuments, museums, and remembrance of comrades-in-arms. Yet, he warns, historical revisionism and amnesia in parts of the world threaten to distort or erase these sacrifices, particularly China’s role in the Allied victory.

The author writes that commemorating the war is not only remembrance but a moral imperative. In today’s world—facing pandemics, climate change, and geopolitical tensions—the same spirit of solidarity is urgently needed. China, he concludes, upholds this legacy through peace, cooperation, and its vision of a shared future for humanity:

As China commemorates the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, it does so not in isolation but as part of a global family that once stood together in resistance, and must now stand together in rebuilding global trust and cooperation. This is not only a tribute to the past – it is a blueprint for the future.

Commenting on Gomez’s article, Jim Jump, Chair of Britain’s International Brigade Memorial Trust, remarked:

Global Times is to be congratulated for recognising the links between the Spanish Civil War and China’s resistance to Japanese militarism in the long Anti-Fascist War of the 1930s and 40s.

The fight against Franco, Hitler and Mussolini in Spain and against Japanese aggression in China was seen by many people in Britain and around the world as one and the same struggle.

The International Brigade Memorial Trust salutes the memory of all those who sent aid to the people of Spain and China and of the volunteers in the International Brigades who went from Spain to China to continue the epic struggle against fascism.

As China and the world prepare to mark the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression on September 3, it is a fitting moment to revisit the long arc of international solidarity in the World Anti-Fascist War, a history that did not begin in 1939, nor did it end with the fall of the Nazi Germany.

The Chinese scholars keeping the memory of Japanese sexual slavery alive

The following article, which was originally published on Sixth Tone, highlights the work of Su Zhiliang and Chen Lifei, a husband and wife team who are China’s foremost scholar activists researching the Japanese militarists’ heinous ‘comfort women’ system, an insitutionalised practice of mass sexual slavery inflicted on women in China, Korea and elsewhere in Asia during Japanese imperialism’s war of aggression.

This year the couple have published two books: “A Comprehensive History of the Japanese Military ‘Comfort Women’ System,” offers an in-depth analysis of wartime female slavery and is considered the most comprehensive, systematic, and authoritative multi-volume study of its kind to date. The other, “The Search: ‘Comfort Woman’ Park Yong-sim and Her Sisters,” is a revised edition setting out Park Yong-sim’s personal narrative as she was taken from her hometown of Nampo, in what is now the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, to Nanjing, capital of China’s eastern Jiangsu province, and forced into sexual slavery at the age of 17.

Since they began their research and fieldwork in the 1990s, the couple have identified 358 comfort women survivors in the Chinese mainland, nearly tripling previous estimates. Now, there are only seven remaining survivors – the youngest of whom is 95 years old.

Wu Haiyun interviewed Su Zhiliang ahead of this year’s International Memorial Day for Comfort Women, which falls on August 14.

Explaining how the issue came to be hidden for so long, Su said: “After WWII, the Japanese government knew this was a shameful crime and systematically destroyed archival materials related to the ‘comfort women’ system, so the issue only came to international attention in 1991, when a 67-year-old Korean woman, Kim Hak-sun, courageously came forward to testify that she had been forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military in China and to file a lawsuit against the Japanese government.”

There were also further obstacles, especially in the early years: “Local officials in China were often uncooperative, as if this history was something to be ashamed of. This resistance began to ease a bit after 2000 (as more survivors sought litigation and public awareness increased), but the survivors themselves would sometimes still decline interviews. For example, we had once arranged for a Shanghai TV crew to travel with us to northern Shanxi province’s capital, Taiyuan, to interview a survivor. Everything was in place, but just before we departed, she called to say she no longer wished to speak on camera. All I could say was that we understood. It’s incredibly painful to recount the most traumatic experiences of your life to strangers.”

He adds: “The history of ‘comfort women’ represents one of the most horrific, systematic violations of women’s rights in modern history. Our research shows that in China alone, the Japanese military established more than 2,100 ‘comfort stations.’ Throughout the entire war, between 360,000 and 410,000 women were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military. Many died during their captivity.”

He also sounds a warning that the Japanese government’s stance towards these crimes is now only getting worse:

“In the 1990s, Japanese school textbooks still included references to the ‘comfort women’ system. Now, such content is becoming increasingly rare. One major reason is the decline of left-leaning historians and the weakening of progressive forces, while nationalist and right-wing voices grow stronger. As a result, Japan’s current attitude toward the issue is even more regressive than it was 30 years ago. We must remain vigilant about this… The ‘comfort women’ system and the [Nazi] Holocaust represent two distinct but equally heinous forms of fascist violence… Both were state-sponsored crimes against humanity, and both epitomise the brutality of fascism and militarism.”

This year, China’s core scholars on “comfort women” — women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese army in World War II — published two career-defining books.

One, “A Comprehensive History of the Japanese Military ‘Comfort Women’ System,” offers an in-depth analysis of wartime female slavery and is considered the most comprehensive, systematic, and authoritative multi-volume study of its kind to date. The other, “The Search: ‘Comfort Woman’ Park Yong-sim and Her Sisters,” is a revised edition about Park Yong-sim’s personal narrative as she was taken from her hometown of Nampo, Korea, to Nanjing, capital of China’s eastern Jiangsu province, and forced into sexual slavery at the age of 17.

In many ways, the works are a fitting capstone to Su Zhiliang and Chen Lifei’s decadeslong scholarship and advocacy, as the husband-and-wife pair, now nearing their 70s, consider stepping back. Taken together, the books encapsulate the dual approach that has defined the Shanghai Normal University scholars’ foundational work to document and identify survivors of the wartime female slavery system.

However, as the couple contemplate the future of their research, challenges remain. Since they began their research and fieldwork in the 1990s, they have identified 358 comfort women survivors in the Chinese mainland, nearly tripling previous estimates. Now, there are only seven remaining survivors — the youngest of whom is 95 years old.

The Taiping Rebellion and the spectre of peasant communism

In the following article, originally published on his website Weaponized Information, Prince Kapone gives an acute analysis and mounts a trenchant defence of China’s Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864), generally regarded as one of the greatest peasant rebellions, as well as bloodiest conflicts, in human history.

Describing it as the “spectre of peasant communism”, Kapone situates the rebellion against the background of the stagnation and decline of China’s feudal system, of the Qing dynasty in particular, and the way this opened up the country to imperialist depredations, most notably the British Opium Wars (1839-1842; 1856-1860).

He explains: “The opium-induced decomposition of Chinese society was no accident; it was policy. This narcotic primitive accumulation did not represent the entry of capitalism through ‘natural’ development, but its violent imposition through military discipline. As in India, Ireland, and Egypt, the arrival of the capitalist world market meant the annihilation of local metabolic rationality in favour of cash crop logic, debt servitude, and currency crisis. The Qing state, no matter its robes or rituals, had become a tributary of London finance.

“It is within this furnace of contradiction that the Taiping Rebellion arose – not as an aberration, nor a reactionary nostalgia for a vanished harmony, but as the spontaneous combustion of a people compressed between imperial plunder and domestic parasitism. In this sense, the Taiping were the dialectical consequence of a global contradiction: the fusion of foreign capital’s devastation with the internal bankruptcy of a feudal order. What followed was not simply rebellion, but the premature birth of a proletarian-peasant war in the belly of a still-feudal dragon.”

He goes on to outline the form and essence of peasant revolt: “When the peasantry takes up arms, it does not quote Hegel – it dreams. But the dream, far from being false, is the condensed expression of real suffering, organised into symbolic form. The bourgeois mind, unable to see beyond its own secular fetishisms, calls this ‘madness,’ ‘fanaticism,’ ‘superstition.’ Yet just as the commodity hides labour beneath its surface, so too does ideology conceal class. The gods of the Taiping did not descend from heaven – they rose from the rice paddies.

“Hong Xiuquan, the failed scholar who declared himself the younger brother of Christ, has been mocked by European scribes as a deluded zealot. But what is delusion in a world where imperial capital arrives by gunship? In the dream of paradise, in the vision of a Heavenly Kingdom on earth, the Chinese peasantry gave voice to their deepest material yearnings: land, bread, justice, revenge. That this expression wore the garb of biblical apocalypse is no stranger than the French Revolution quoting Rome or the English Levellers citing scripture. The form is borrowed; the content is real…

“This was a weaponised syncretism: a theology forged in the crucible of examination failure, landlord extortion, opium hunger, and state decay. Christ, repurposed by Hong, was not a redeemer of souls but a hammer of kings. The Taiping gospel was less a catechism than a call to arms, less sermon than strategy.”

Hong Lei warns of the continued danger of Japanese militarism as China prepares for key anniversary

We previously reported on the 26 foreign heads of state or government who will attend China’s September 3 commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War at the invitation of President Xi Jinping.

At his press conference, given on August 28, Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei also gave details of some other high-ranking persons who will participate, noteworthy among whom are:

Speaker of the National Parliament of Timor Leste Maria Fernanda Lay
President of the National Assembly of Venezuela Jorge Rodriguez Gómez
Chairman of the Bulgarian Socialist Party and Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria Atanas Zafirov
Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Woo Won-Shik
Chief Adviser to the Brazilian President Celso Amorim
Representative of the Nicaraguan Government and Presidential Adviser Laureano Ortega Murillo
Minister of War Veterans and Rights Holders of Algeria Laid Rebiga
President of the New Development Bank (and former Brazilian President) Dilma Rousseff
Former Prime Minister of Japan Yukio Hatoyama
Former Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou
Former Prime Ministers of New Zealand Helen Clark and John Key
Former Foreign Minister of Australia Robert (Bob) Carr

Also, in addition to his comments regarding the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin and leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un, as well as on the significance of the broad representation from the Global South, which we previously reported, Hong also touched on a number of other questions, including the present situation regarding Japan, where he commented:

“Within Japan, there have all along been some forces that try to deny and glorify aggression, distort history, and even honour the war criminals and justify their crimes. This constitutes a challenge to the post-war international order, a challenge to human conscience and a challenge to all peace-loving people. In recent years, Japan has also drastically adjusted its security policy, increased its defence budget year by year and continued to ease restrictions on arms exports, seeking a breakthrough in military development. Naturally, this arouses the strong scepticism of its Asian neighbours and the international community, as to whether Japan is genuinely committed to an exclusively defence-oriented policy and to peaceful development.”

The following is the full text of the press conference. It was originally published on the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Head of the press center for the events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War Shou Xiaoli: Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to the first press conference hosted by the Press Center for the events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

China’s victory in the war against Japanese aggression inspired the oppressed people of the Global South

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei has stated that the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was the first complete victory in China’s modern national liberation struggle and added that this greatly inspired the people of colonised and semi-colonised countries around the world that had suffered from aggression and oppression.

He was speaking at an August 28 press conference where he introduced the 26 heads of state or government who will attend Beijing’s September 3 commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War at the invitation of President Xi Jinping.

Responding to a comment regarding the heavy representation of leaders from the Global South, Hong added that China’s victory had given the oppressed nations confidence and courage to fight for national independence and liberation and had exerted a profound influence on their eventual triumph.

Eighty years later, the era when a handful of countries dominated the destinies of others, monopolised international affairs and held exclusive advantages in development has become a thing of the past. The collective rise of the Global South is fundamentally reshaping the global landscape. No longer the “silent majority” or a “vast backward bloc,” the Global South now represents an awakened new force and new source of hope in changes unseen in a century, Hong noted. The following article was originally published by Global Times.

When asked to comment that among the foreign guests and dignitaries attending China’s V-Day commemorations in Beijing, many are leaders from Global South countries, Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei stated that the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression was the first complete victory in China’s modern national liberation struggle, greatly inspiring colonized and semi-colonized countries around the world that had suffered from aggression and oppression.

It gave them the confidence and courage to fight for national independence and liberation, exerting a profound influence on their eventual triumph, said Hong.

Eighty years later, the era when a handful of countries dominated the destinies of others, monopolized international affairs and held exclusive advantages in development has become a thing of the past. The collective rise of the Global South is fundamentally reshaping the global landscape.

Over the past 40 years, the share of Global South countries in global GDP has risen from 24 percent to over 40 percent, and in the past 20 years they have contributed as much as 80 percent of global economic growth. Increasingly, Global South countries are hosting BRICS, APEC and G20 summits, making their voices heard and leaving a clear imprint, said Hong.

No longer the “silent majority” or a “vast backward bloc,” the Global South now represents an awakened new force and new source of hope in changes unseen in a century, Hong noted.

More than 80 years ago, in that life-and-death struggle between justice and evil, peace-loving people around the world united to form a broad anti-fascist front, defeating brutal aggressors, creating world peace and laying an important foundation for the postwar international order. Today, China stands ready to work together with Global South countries and others to promote a more equal and orderly multipolar world, advance inclusive and beneficial economic globalization and jointly contribute to the just cause of world peace, development and progress, Hong said.

London concert honours China’s victory over fascism

More than 300 people gathered at the Royal College of Music in London’s Kensington district on the evening of August 28 for a concert arranged by the Chinese Embassy in commemoration of the 80^th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

With the theme, Honour History for a Better Future, the concert featured ten pieces of Chinese and Western music presented by the Hunan Provincial Song and Dance Theatre and New Elements Music.

Founded in 1953, the Hunan Provincial Song and Dance Theatre is one of China’s most prestigious performing arts groups. New Elements Music was founded in London in 2019 and is dedicated to building bridges between Chinese and global music cultures. There were also guest performers from the London City Orchestra and the Camden Philharmonia Orchestra.

Opening with the Ode to the Red Flag, a classic of revolutionary Chinese music composed by Lü Qiming in 1965, the program featured Chinese modern folk music from the period of war and revolution along with contemporary work inspired by the vision of building a community of shared future for humanity. Western pieces included Sir Edward Elgar’s Nimrod.

Particularly poignant for a number of people in the audience was Long Way from Home, the theme song from the documentary film The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru, performed live by Elly O’Keeffe, the London-based Irish singer, who also sings it in the film, accompanied by clips from the film.

A stirring finale was provided by the piano solo Ode to the Yellow River, performed by Di Xiao, Professor at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, followed by the choral singing of Defend the Yellow River and My Motherland.

Defend the Yellow River is the last movement of the Yellow River Piano Cantata composed by Xian Xinghai during the war against Japanese aggression. In 1970, it was also adapted into the Yellow River Piano Concerto, which incorporates phrases from The East is Red and the Internationale.

The mixed choir was formed by members of the Choir of the Chinese Embassy in London, the London Chinese Philharmonic Choir and a team from the London Branch of the Bank of China.

Special mention should also be made of the evening’s conductors, Ray Lin from New Elements Music and Thomas Payne, Musical Director of the London City Orchestra.

The event was sponsored by the London Branch of the Bank of China.

Among the distinguished friends of China present were Labour member of the House of Lords, Lord Davidson of Glen Cova; Mrs Denise Wynne, daughter of Lisbon Maru survivor Dennis Morley; former President of the British Sociological Association Martin Albrow; and Jack Perry, Chairman of the 48 Group Club. Friends of Socialist China was represented by our co-editors Carlos Martinez and Keith Bennett.

A short report of the evening was carried by the Xinhua News Agency.

World leaders to gather in China to mark victory in anti-fascist war

China will stage a massive military parade on September 3 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War and 26 heads of state or government will attend on the invitation of President Xi Jinping.

This was announced by Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hong Lei on August 28.

China’s official listing foregrounds Russian President Vladimir Putin and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) top leader Kim Jong Un. With Kim also being joined by the Presidents of Vietnam, Laos and Cuba, this represents an unprecedented gathering of the heads of state of all five presently existing socialist countries.

The presidents of all five of China’s Central Asian neighbours – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan – will also attend, as will the leaders of Belarus, Armenia and Azerbaijan, meaning that nine of the 15 former republics of the USSR, who collectively waged the Great Patriotic War against Nazism, will be represented at top level. Other national leaders from countries with a long and significant history of friendship with China, include those from Cambodia, Mongolia, Nepal, Zimbabwe, the Republic of Congo, Iran, Serbia and Slovakia, the last mentioned being the only member of the European Union and NATO to be represented at top level.

Besides those mentioned above, China’s southeast Asian neigbours will also be represented by Indonesia, Malaysia and Myanmar (meaning that six of the ten members of the Association of South East Asian Nations, ASEAN, will be represented at top level), while Pakistan and the Maldives join Nepal in representing China’s South Asian neighbours.

In addition, at the invitation of the Chinese government, heads of parliaments, deputy prime ministers and high-level representatives from various countries, heads of international organisations, and former political dignitaries will also attend the V-Day commemorations.

Announcing the participation of Kim Jong Un, Hong Lei said that China and the DPRK are traditional friendly neighbours. He noted that during the arduous years of war, the Chinese and DPRK people supported each other and fought side by side against Japanese aggression, making important contributions to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and humanity’s just cause. He further said that safeguarding, consolidating and developing China-DPRK relations is the firm stance of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government, adding that China stands ready to continue working with the DPRK to enhance exchanges and cooperation, and advance socialist development.

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) also announced Kim’s China visit.

Hong also said that President Putin’s attendance at the commemoration events further highlights the high level of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era and underscores their unity in safeguarding the victorious outcome of World War II. He stressed that China and the Soviet Union, as the main battlefields of World War II in Asia and Europe, respectively, served as pillars in the fight against militarism and fascism 80 years ago and made immense national sacrifices.

China and DPRK jointly celebrate the 80th anniversary of victory over Japanese imperialism

China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) have jointly marked the 80^th anniversary of the victory of the war to resist aggression and the world anti-fascist war with a number of events.

The Chinese Embassy in the DPRK capital Pyongyang organised a reception on August 20. The Xinhua News Agency reported that among the guests present were Choe Ryong Hae, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), First Vice-President of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK, and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the DPRK, and DPRK Culture Minister Sung Jong Gyu.

Reporting the speech delivered by Chinese Ambassador Wang Yajun, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that he noted that, “the China-DPRK friendship was provided in the flames of the bloody revolutionary struggle, [and] stressed that Comrade Kim Il Sung, the great leader of the Korean people and a close friend of the Chinese people, made a great contribution to the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression by waging a death-defying struggle with the Japanese aggressors, together with the Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Army.

“It is the steadfast policy of the Chinese party and government to successfully defend, consolidate and develop the traditional China-DPRK friendship at all times, he said, expressing the readiness to thoroughly implement the important common understanding made by the top leaders of China and the DPRK and thus advance the socialist cause of the two countries and to make contribution to the happiness of the peoples of the two countries and global peace and stability.”

His speech was followed by that from DPRK Culture Minister Sung Jong Gyu, who paid high tribute to the forerunners of the two countries who sacrificed their youth and lives without hesitation in the sacred anti-Japanese war, and said that the victory in the anti-Japanese war was a world historic event that brought to a close the Second World War with the victory of the world anti-fascist democratic forces and made a great contribution to form a main current with independence and peace in international relations.

He said that the DPRK will make joint efforts together with the Chinese comrades to steadily develop the friendly and cooperative relations forged on the road of accomplishing the cause of anti-imperialist independence and socialism true to the noble intention of the top leaders of the two parties and the two countries.

The website of the Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang carried the full text of both speeches.

It quoted Ambassador Wang Yajun as stating:

“The traditional friendship between China and the DPRK was forged in the revolutionary struggle of blood and fire. More than 80 years ago, the military and civilians of the two countries shared the same hatred and dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese invaders. Many people with lofty ideals in Korea went to China to carry out the anti-Japanese struggle, which received strong support from the Chinese people and inspired the fighting spirit of the Chinese people. In particular, Comrade Kim Il Sung, the great leader of the Korean people and a close friend of the Chinese people, fought to the death against the Japanese invaders together with the Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Army of China, not only making immortal contributions to the liberation of Korea, but also making important contributions to the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Comrade Kim Il Sung once fondly recalled the days when he was with his comrades-in-arms of the Northeast Anti-Japanese Alliance, saying that he had ‘stablished a deep friendship’ and that ‘the scene of that year is still fresh in his memory’.

“I would like to reiterate that safeguarding, consolidating and developing the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK has always been the unswerving policy of the Chinese Party and government. China is willing to work with the DPRK to resolutely implement the important consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties and two countries, develop the traditional friendly and cooperative relations between China and the DPRK, promote the steady and far-reaching socialist cause of the two countries, benefit the two peoples, and promote regional and world peace and stability.”